The present invention relates to wireless communications, and more particularly, to wireless mobile data communications.
Wireless local area networks (LANs) are commonly used to provide data communications over small areas, such as the interior of a building. These networks typically support a high density of users and/or high-bandwidth users, such that services like networked document management and web browsing can be offered at a high level of service quality. However, these wireless LANs typically use radio interfaces that are limited in range.
Larger areas are commonly served by cellular wireless data communications networks, such as General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) or Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) networks. These systems may be extended indoors using, for example, microcells and/or distributed antenna systems. Such cellular wireless data communications systems may be limited in the user data rate and/or user density they can support, and may not be compatible with many types of wireless terminals.